WHEN YOU FEEL LIKE GOD HAS LET YOU DOWN…
Estimated reading time: 11 minutes
What do you do when you feel like God has let you down? This is something that most people don’t like talking about because well, we can’t say that about God. He makes no mistakes and while this is true, there are times you get to a point where your back is against the wall and even the last Strand of hope gets taken away from you. So what do you do? How do you even begin to process the emotions when you feel like God has stripped everything from you? What do you do when the very thing you were counting on falls through and you suddenly find yourself in a hopeless situation with no hope for the future?
- So back to the question, what do you do when you feel like God has let you down?
- Therefore,
- Take it a day at a time.
- Scriptures that will help you stand when you feel like God has let you down.
- Conclusion.
Maybe you are in this situation right now, and you feel all alone. And while it could be true that no one in your circle is going through what you are, you most definitely aren’t the only one in the world going through it right now. And I bet you don’t like hearing people tell you that it will be okay, it could be worse, and so forth. So I will not tell you that, at least not for now.
So back to the question, what do you do when you feel like God has let you down?
Be honest when you feel like God has let you down.
What emotions are you going through? What exactly are you feeling in your heart? Exactly what would you like to tell God regarding your situation? Are you harboring resentment, disappointment, anger towards Him? Why don’t you keep it real and tell Him what you feel? He knows everything and you can not pretend before Him. Are you angry, sad, hurt and feeling let down? Tell Him. Hide nothing from you, He sees and knows all. He is omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient. There is nothing under the sun or in the heavens that He does not know. You can never hide from Him.
You perceive every movement of my heart and soul, and you understand my every thought before it even enters my mind. You are so intimately aware of me, Lord. And You read my heart like an open book and you know all the words I’m about to speak before I even start a sentence! You know every step I will take before my journey even begins.
And You’ve gone into my future to prepare the way, and in kindness, you follow behind me to spare me from the harm of my past. With your hand of love upon my life, you impart a blessing to me. This is just too wonderful, deep, and incomprehensible! Your understanding of me brings me wonder and strength. If I go up to heaven, you’re there! If I go down to the realm of the dead, you’re there too! And If I fly with wings into the shining dawn, you’re there! If I fly into the radiant sunset, you’re there waiting!
Therefore,
His word clearly tells us He knows it all and you can hide nothing from Him. Since He knows it all anyway, why not just be vulnerable and tell Him exactly how you feel? Stop trying to come to Him with all these formulas and steps and instead relate with Him as you would your father, guardian, or mentor. Allow Him to be your friend. He yearns to have a genuine relationship with you and not just a superficial one. God wants to be the first person you run to before you go to anyone else. He wants to be your confidant, friend, comforter, and all. And this can only come by being vulnerable, real, and raw with Him.
If you are having a hard time being vulnerable with Him, read the book of Psalms and see how King David and the other authors poured their hearts out to God. They were not afraid to keep it real and because they confronted their emotions and feelings, they were all able to receive the healing they needed. God will only heal the areas you present to Him and He will not work with the superficial aspect you bring to Him. Give Him your darkest, deepest secrets, your thoughts, your pain, and your agony to Him.
Let me ask you this, how has hiding your feelings benefited you? I am confident that the answer is negative, so instead of harboring them, why don’t you hand them over to God? He is your creator and thus He can and will transform every area of your life you give Him. Don’t be afraid to give Him your frustrations. He will give you His peace for your worry, anxiety, and frustrations. He will give you a garment of praise for your mourning. God wants to give you freedom from your bondage and bring out the real you if only you will peel off the mask and allow Him to see the real you. That is what He wants, nothing less.
Journal.
Writing your emotions and feelings gives a voice to what you can’t voice and words to your pain. In Journaling, you can express yourself fully and release all the pent-up emotions. This, in turn, allows you to heal. Healing comes when you address the actual emotions that you are hiding and confronting them is the first step. Journaling helps you confront what is in your heart and soul and it gives you room to let go of all the pain. It does not matter what you feel, just write it down.
Journaling is not only therapeutic, but it’s also freeing, and when you journal, you feel lighter than you otherwise would if you hadn’t. Journaling is a safe place, especially if you find it difficult to express yourself to others and be open to them. And even for those who cannot afford therapy, journaling can be a significant source of help too.
Prayer is essential when you feel like God has let you down.
Prayer helps you surrender your burdens to God. There are days when prayer is just two words, something like helping me. Other times you will not even have words to say instead, will be tears that will stream out of your eyes. Regardless take some time out to pray. Take it to the Lord in prayer. He is your only friend and the only one who you can fully trust with your emotions. God says that even tears are liquid prayers that God stores in a bottle.
He understands your tears and knows what you really mean amidst your tears. Isn’t it cool that God can read and interpret our tears and translate them into words? Like I said earlier, He knows everything, so even in moments where all you have are tears, just take them all to God.
Find solace in His word.
When Joseph was sold for slavery in Egypt, he thought his dream had died and he must have lost hope and thought that his best days were behind him. And although it seemed like it, eventually his dawn came and God elevated him from the prison to the palace. The Israelites were in bondage in Egypt for 430 years, but eventually, their day of freedom came and they came out with their wages in full and also wealth from the Egyptians. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. Smile through the confusion. Find stories in the Bible.
The word of God will encourage you in moments when you have grown weary and don’t know how to go on. Yes, it might seem like what God has spoken is taking a long time to come to pass. Or worse, your situation could contradict God’s word. But the truth is that God always fulfills His promises. And even when it looks like things are taking time, He is working it all out for your good. All you need is to have faith. And you activate your faith by reading the word of God.
Remember this: if God did it for Abraham, He will do it for you. After all, you are His child too, and He wants you to walk in the fullness of who He created you to be. And if what you were expecting on did not come to pass, could it be that was not what He had for you to begin with?
Take it a day at a time.
This is very important. Your worry will change nothing and neither will try to do anything with your own strength, so instead of frustrating yourself, even more, just trust. I know this is one of the hardest things one can do, but I promise you it pays off. Sometimes you will only have the strength to make it through the next minute, and that is okay. So instead of worrying about tomorrow, just focus on today.
What can you do today? Enjoy today and live in the moment. Forget the past. You can not change it and stop thinking about the future. It is not here yet. Focus on the present and do what you can today. Enjoy the moment and when you can’t ask God for the strength to make it through the moment. Remember, it is okay to ask God for strength. He says that he will renew your strength and rejuvenate you. So don’t be afraid to ask Him for the strength to make it through another day.
Scriptures that will help you stand when you feel like God has let you down.
“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” 2 Peter 3:9.
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” James 1:17.
“For this is what the high and exalted One says– he who lives forever, whose name is holy: ‘I live in a high and holy place, but also with the one who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite’” Isaiah 57:15.
“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom” Isaiah 40:28.
“God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you” 2 Thessalonians 1:6.
“And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them” 1 John 4:16.
“For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him” Colossians 1:16.
“For the LORD your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your ancestors, which he confirmed to them by oath” Deuteronomy 4:31.
“God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he: should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?” Numbers 23:19
Conclusion.
There are days you will feel like God has let you down because of the disappointment of unanswered prayers. And that is okay to tell Him that. Instead of bottling your emotions up, take it all to Him and let Him heal the pain. And don’t be afraid to tell Him what you really feel. It can be painful and frustrating when the last shred of hope is taken from you and it is okay to admit it.
You will have bad days and that is okay, it might even look like you are going backward. But remember this: the journey will not be a straight line and healing does not have a formula. So just celebrate the small wins. Laugh through the frustration, smile through the tears. And remember weeping may endure in the night, but joy comes in the morning. They that wait upon the Lord, shall renew their strength. Just wait on the Lord, He’s got you and He will see you through!
8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
10 As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. Isaiah 55
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Radiantly Resurging
Mercy is the author and founder of radiantly resurging. She is a Christian and having gone through the wilderness season, she decided to impart the knowledge learned to help others navigate their wilderness season too
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